Secret laps get Stoner V8 ready

Mark Fogarty

FORMER world motorcycle champion Casey Stoner has secretly trained at the Mount Panorama track at Bathurst as part of his intensive preparations for his V8 Supercar debut at the end of the month.

Amid concerns that Stoner will start his new car racing career at a very high level with no four-wheel competition experience, he has been practising extensively in different types of race-style sedans in addition to trial runs in his Holden Commodore V8 Supercar.

Fairfax Media has learnt that as well as regular training sessions at a private circuit, Stoner took part in a track day at the 6.2-kilometre Mount Panorama hillside course - venue of the annual Bathurst V8 endurance race classic - last Tuesday to log laps of a difficult track.

The 27-year-old winner of the 2007 and 2011 MotoGP world titles attended a V8RACE Experience day at the Bathurst circuit, driving V8 Ford Falcons and Holden Commodores equipped with racing modifications and safety equipment.

He received driving tips from racing-experienced instructors that included four-time Bathurst 1000 winner Greg Murphy and V8 legend John Bowe, who it is understood spent a lot of time with Stoner outlining the tricks and traps of V8 Supercar racing.

Stoner, who quit MotoGP at the end of last season, is tentatively embarking on a long-term second racing career in V8s by contesting the second-tier Dunlop Series, which is the training ground for the main V8 Supercars championship.

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He is racing a Commodore run by the V8 championship-winning Triple Eight Holden team, essentially becoming the junior teammate of V8 champion Jamie Whincup and series superstar Craig Lowndes.

Stoner's car will even run in the same new Red Bull Racing Australia colours of Triple Eight's latest VF Commodores.

But unlike Whincup's and Lowndes' machines, which are built to V8's new Car Of The Future rules, his car will be one of the team's racers from last year, which continue to be eligible for the development series.

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Stoner's introduction to car racing will be in the main support races at the season-opening Adelaide 500 from February 28-March 3. The 3.2-kilometre Adelaide Parklands street circuit is a treacherous track renowned for high-speed accidents. Stoner was also granted a full car racing licence by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) without taking part in any minor races, avoiding the normal qualification level of being observed at three events.

But motor sport officials and the Triple Eight team's management are satisfied that Stoner's experience and status in MotoGP, along with training and testing, mean he will adapt easily and safely to racing V8 Supercars.

He completed a full test day in his Commodore at Queensland Raceway last Monday and will return to the track later this week for more trials.

''We have no concerns whatsoever,'' Triple Eight Racing chief Adrian Burgess told Fairfax Media. ''He's been driving a lot of stuff. He's been in and out of a lot of cars.

''He's a rookie - he knows it, everyone knows it. We're not putting pressure on him to win straight away. The point of this year is to see if he likes V8 racing.''

Burgess wasn't worried about Stoner's high profile making him a target for the aspiring young V8 drivers in the Dunlop Series, especially in the opening races in Adelaide. ''He'll be fine,'' he said. ''No one's worrying about that stuff. He'll give as good as he gets. He'll stand up for himself. He'll race hard and fair.''

CAMS director, racing operations Tim Schenken confirmed that Stoner qualified for a full racing licence under a waiver system for champions from other forms of motor sport.

''What we've done for Casey Stoner is no different than for any other applicant who doesn't fulfil the strict licence criteria,'' said Schenken.

''There is a dispensation process, based on the applicant's competitive history and achievements in another form of motor sport.

''Clearly, with Stoner, there's no question of his ability to race, speed is not an issue, and the way motor cycling racing and car racing are conducted is very similar.''